Wellness tourism all the rage in Vietnam

Nguyen Thi Nguyen Huong, a resident of Da Nang City in central Vietnam, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Monday that she opted for a wellness-oriented getaway rather than the typical sightseeing trip for this summer.

She has traveled to a natural hot spring located 30 kilometers from Hue City, also in the central region.

“I searched online and found a range of wellness tours,” Huong shared.

"This location isn’t far from my home.”

The resort, where she stayed, features yoga sessions, water meditation, mountain hiking, and specialized acupressure therapy rooms.

“This is my first time to experience a health-focused travel service,” she said.

According to some tour operators, unlike traditional tourism focusing on movement and exploration, wellness tourism centers on well-being activities that support both the body and mind.

Many resorts and hotels in Vietnam are increasingly treating wellness as a premium add-on for guests.

Also, travel films are responding to the growing demand, launching a variety of wellness packages, such as healing tours and wellness retreats.

Wellness tourism gains momentum

In 2018, about 350,000 international visitors came to Vietnam for medical treatments combined with leisure, spending an estimated US$2 billion, the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism said.

These figures showed that wellness tourism in Vietnam appeals to high-spending travelers who often stay between three and five days and prioritize health and self-care as the main reasons for travel.

"This tourism model blends nature-based experiences with physical and psychological wellness," the authority noted.

“It’s a rapidly growing sector, not only in Vietnam but also worldwide."

Recognizing the potential, the Vietnamese government has begun pushing for strategic development of this sector.

However, industry insiders admitted that the shortage of highly skilled professionals remains a bottleneck.

Tran Thi Phuong, a tourism faculty lecturer, emphasized the need for targeted policies to encourage investment in wellness tourism.

“There must be structured collaboration between healthcare institutions and tourism service providers,” she said, adding that it is vital to ensure high-quality, reliable wellness travel packages.

Global boom in wellness travel

Globally, countries like India, Japan, China, Thailand, and Indonesia have established themselves as wellness tourism hubs.

According to a 2021 report by the Global Wellness Institute, the wellness tourism sector was expected to grow 21 percent annually between 2020 and 2025, outpacing all other segments of the global health industry.

In 2022 alone, wellness retreat brought in an estimated $919 billion, accounting for 18 percent of the global tourism revenue.

A recent survey by the Wellness Tourism Association found that 76 percent of respondents were willing to spend more on trips aimed at improving their health, while 55 percent were prepared to pay extra for psychological wellness services or therapies.